Wizard of the Abyss - Chapter 145

WETRIED TRANSLATIONS

Wizard of the Abyss

[Translator – Aren]

Chapter 145 - Connection (6)

"...Anyway, there’s still something I have to do.”

After seeing Carose and Decay clash, I had to make sure things didn’t spiral out of control.

Knowing Carose’s personality, if something went wrong, one of them would definitely be killed. That wouldn’t be good.

I sat Linmel down on the nearby steps and warned her,

"Stay here for a bit.”

"No."

"...Why?”

She had accepted my request to put down her sword without complaint, but being told to wait was apparently a step too far. Linmel grabbed my sleeve, clearly pouting.

"Jern, you’ll disappear again if I don’t watch you! I’m not letting you go this time.”

"I'm not disappearing. I’m just going to take a look. But if someone notices you next to me…”

"Don’t worry. I’m confident in my stealth skills!”

Linmel confidently wrapped herself in her cloak.

I was about to ask what kind of joke she was pulling, when at that exact moment, her breathing and heartbeat completely stopped.

My panic lasted only a second. Even though she was standing right in front of me, her figure had blurred to the point it was hard to confirm she was there with my eyes, and yet, a familiar scent lingered.

"That’s something my master gave you, isn’t it?”

"Hehehe, you caught me.”

It seemed Dercia hadn’t trusted completely after all. She even created a magic tool like this for her.

If she was this determined to stay by my side, I had no other choice. I sighed and gave her one final warning.

"Don’t ever take that off.”

"Got it!”

After answering brightly, Linmel started walking ahead.

In her steps, I could see a lightness in them unique to those who’d devoted their entire lives to the sword.

Just how much effort had she put in to be able to move like that without even thinking?

Curious, I grabbed Linmel by the wrist.

"Before that, wait a second."

"E-eh?"

Her face flushed as I took her hand. Its softness surprised me.

There were a few calluses, but I couldn’t help wondering if she had really put in the amount of effort her strength seemed to necessitate.

"Wh-what are you doing?"

"...Nothing.”

Talent.

It wasn’t that Linmel hadn’t worked hard.

It was just that while others might swing at empty air ten thousand times to perfect their swing, she could achieve the same results in ten swings. She simply didn’t need as much effort.

Carose must have decided it was better to treat that talent like fragile glass, protecting it carefully, rather than demanding blood-soaked determination from her remaining time.

Moments like this made the world feel terribly unfair.

"Let’s go. Carose is probably fighting an Upper Tier right now.”

"Upper Tier?"

"Um, think of them as a Scarlet Abyss executive.”

"Executive?”

Seeing that, it almost felt like life tried to balance out a bit.

But still, Linmel was clearly being dragged around by Carose’s honeyed lies at an age when she should have been studying. I’d deal with that later. For now we moved through the alleyways toward the spot my Tide Sense was guiding me to.

"...Hmm."

As expected.

Even from this distance, I could see my Abyssal Sea slowly freezing.

It seemed he’d unfolded his realm. Against Carose, anything less would mean getting his head taken in an instant.

"Jern, it’s…"

"Hm?"

"It’s cold here.”

-Shiver

Linmel trembled, speaking in a low voice.

Her animal-like instincts must have picked up on that extremely cold Abyss Realm.

...Cold, huh.

Sure, it had wide applicability, but could something that simple really deal with Carose?

I got my answer after passing the next alley.

"Wh-what the hell is this? It’s completely useless!”

"Damn it…what are we supposed to do against a Knight?!”

Carose was facing off against a bunch of nobodies.

That wasn’t all too strange actually. After all, this whole thing was just a performance. If it got out that an Upper Tier executive intervened directly, it would ruin everything.

The problem was that the bandits were still alive.

Carose stood there, clutching her head as she glared at them.

That was the strange part. I quickly assessed the bandits. They weren’t even wizards. Just third-rate street trash. The Carose I knew would’ve wiped them out in under 10 seconds, ripped out their nails, and interrogated them about who was pulling their strings.

I frowned in confusion, unable to comprehend why she was just standing there.

"Erm, but…”

One of the bandits moved first.

"Isn't she already dead? She’s not moving.”

"...M-Maybe?”

"But her eyes are open…”

"M-maybe she’s just frozen like that..."

"Ah, fuck it…We can’t just stand around forever anyway.”

One of them cautiously approached Carose, holding a large ice crystal he’d pulled from his pocket.

The fear and tension on his face slowly twisted into joy as she still didn’t react, even after several steps.

"See, I was right! This bitch can’t mo—”

A flash of light.

"Huh."

Splat!

The head went flying, skidding across the ground and painting the street with dark red puddles.

Carose looked at the collapsed body, then muttered in a slightly dull, slurred voice.

"Who’s…next?”

"Wh-what…?!”

The bandits looked like they were about to have a seizure.

But my unease only grew stronger.

If she could do that, then why keep this meaningless standoff going?

She wasn’t completely frozen either.

"They’re not an easy opponent.”

Linmel whispered as she watched them.

I couldn’t understand her words so I lowered my voice and asked,

"What are you talking about? They’re just ordinary bandits.”

"They move like they are, but they’re insanely fast.”

"What?"

"Look, their footwork is unnaturally quick when they move.”

Frowning, I looked again.

The bandits were hastily retreating—

"...Huh?”

Just like Linmel had mentioned.

Their speed felt off.

Like someone had fast-forwarded a video—too fast.

Speed.

That was when something flashed through my mind.

"Linmel. can you hear me?”

"...H-huh? Yeah.”

"I can’t do this for a reason, so could you do it for me? Drop this.”

I quickly picked up a small stone from the ground and handed it to her.

There was a small chance that the Abyssal Sea falsified the results, so Linmel was the one who had to test it.

"Drop it?”

"Yeah."

"Okay."

Bewildered, Linmel lightly let the stone fall to the ground.

-Tok.

Almost at the same moment, the stone slammed into the ground.

At an unbelievable speed. It should’ve dug into the ground, but instead only a small cloud of dust rose up.

"Wh-what is this??”

"...Hah."

Seeing her reaction confirmed it.

Decay couldn’t just freeze bodies.

He could also freeze thought.

Every process of receiving, processing, and reacting to information, Decay’s Abyss Realm made everything decay, slowing it all to a crawl.

"So that’s why he’s called Decay…”

Thinking about it now, the name had been a dead giveaway.

What a terrifying ability. Even more so because it was nearly impossible to detect.

If you didn’t know from the start, then even realizing it midway would probably mean that one’s death had already been decided.

That realization made my face twist into a scowl.

'Wait, then why didn’t Dercia tell me about this?'

A guaranteed first-hit kill. An ability where seeing it meant dying. And yet Dercia, who had personally fought Decay twice, had never said a word about it.

She wasn’t the type to keep something like that secret. As I frowned in confusion, something changed on Carose’s side.

"..."

She took her first step, albeit very slowly.

She had likely been inside the extreme cold far longer than we had, so I couldn’t even begin to imagine how much her thinking had slowed.

Carose probably knew that as well.

But she stepped forward without the slightest hesitation.

"C-come—!”

Seen from outside, it didn’t really look particularly fast.

But with those movements, she cut down the bandits who were now barely even visible, one after the other.

They tried to flee. But Carose wielded her sword like a spear, striking with perfect reach, allowing not a single one to escape.

She lightly picked up an ice crystal; her speed visibly increased.

So this is where the time Decay bought me ended, huh? Just as I had thought that—

"You really thought I’d fall for such a trick?”

-Crack!

Carose shattered the ice crystal without a moment’s hesitation.

"Hah!”

After a single sharp exhale, she swung her sword at the building.

It was like throwing an egg at a rock. Except, unfortunately for the building, it was Carose who was holding the egg.

-Booom!

The first floor split apart, and the entire structure collapsed, toppling to the right.

...There were no people inside, but I desperately wanted to believe she knew that beforehand.

Instead of people, something else emerged.

"We’ve never met before, have we?”

From the rubble of the collapsed building, Decay rose, brushing dust off his body with an expression of mild annoyance.

Carose glared back at him with intense hostility.

"This isn’t power that some mere artifact can produce. How many Fallen do you think I’ve beheaded until now?”

"Hmm. I didn’t underestimate you, but the shrine maiden’s sword certainly exceeds any expectation I had.”

Decay twisted his hand and began stepping backward.

From the moment his identity was exposed, the plan had already lost most of its effectiveness.

Seeing him retreat, Carose bared her teeth and charged.

"How dare you stain Her Highness’ name with such a filthy title!”

-Craaack!

A sword aimed at Decay’s neck was blocked by transparent ice bursting from the ground.

But it didn’t stop. Slowly, Carose’s blade carved through the ice, inching closer to his throat.

"If you say you don’t intend to fight…I’ll make you.”

...This is bad.

Carose had no intention of stopping. City center or not, she meant to finish it here. And Decay was freezing the Abyssal Sea little by little in response.

I didn’t care if Decay died—but the opposite was a problem.

No choice, then.

I drew Linmel’s sword.

"I’m borrowing this for a moment.”

"Huh? Why? Kyaa!”

Linmel screamed as blood splashed out.

Of course, I wasn’t the kind of human scum vicious enough to hurt Linmel badly.

I had cut my own thigh. Blood instantly welled up and I smeared it across Linmel’s wrist and the edges of her Knight’s uniform.

"Done."

"Wh-what do you mean ‘done’? Doesn’t it hurt? Are you okay?”

"Worry about yourself first. You’ve been kidnapped.”

"??"